NFC Interface Chip Harvests Power From RF Field

Posted Dec 10, 2013 4:37:37 PM |
Posted

Operating on power harvested from an NFC reader's RF field, the AS3953 NFiC near field communication interface chip requires no external power source and at most one external component (a capacitor). According to the manufacturer, the device enables full bi-directional NFC capability at a total cost less than half that of a typical NFC reader implementation.

The AS3953 is fully compliant with NFC Forum specifications (NFCIP-1 target at 106 kbps) and the ISO 14443A standard (up to 848 kbps, to Level 4), making it suitable for use in contactless smart cards and as an NFC Forum-compatible interface tag, and it can establish instant communication with any NFC-enabled phone in close proximity (less than 10 cm).

The AS3953 has a configurable wake-up interrupt, enabling a zero-power system design in shutdown mode. It also includes a complete analogue front end, 1 KB of internal EEPROM, and a 4-wire SPI interface with a 32-byte FIFO. The is able to draw up to 5 mA of harvested current from the external electromagnetic field and includes an internal power management circuit, making the device suitable for use in battery powered and portable microcontroller-based devices.